


Dog Teeth

by CaffeineAddict94



Category: Sally Face (Video Games)
Genre: Alternate Universe, Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Angst, Canonical Character Death, Drama, Emotional/Psychological Abuse, Eventual Romance, F/M, Heavy Angst, Hurt/Comfort, Implied/Referenced Child Abuse, M/M, Past Abuse
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-05-05
Updated: 2019-05-09
Packaged: 2020-02-26 17:15:39
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 2
Words: 2,451
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18721459
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/CaffeineAddict94/pseuds/CaffeineAddict94
Summary: "Wandering through the streets, Sal Fisher felt like something was watching him."Based on a really weird dream I had. Also inspired by Nicole Dollanganger’s song of the same name. I write a lot of drabbles because I have way too many ideas.





	1. Chapter 1

**Dog Teeth**

 

Wandering through the streets, Sal Fisher felt like something was watching him.

The sky was a pale yellow, like sallow skin. It reminded him of sickness and disease, of decay. Of death. His sneakered feet thumped dully against the pavement as he continued his walk to nowhere. The street was empty, abandoned, and the only thing greeting him today were the hollowed out shells of cars. The smell of smoke lingered in the air, hinting at the fires that had ravaged what was once a peaceful city. He knew this place, somehow, despite not knowing its name. It was intimately familiar to him and he tried to look past the strange landscape to find the truth behind the mirage. There was something more here. Something he needed to see…

A loud thump had Sal waking with a start. Cold sweat made his t-shirt cling to his back while his sheets were twisted around his legs, constricting him. He fumbled to untangle himself as his eyes darted about the room. He couldn’t see anything out of the ordinary but that did nothing to ease his fears. He’d never been a fan of the dark. All those shadows pressing in on him…it was like he could feel it in his bones. He nearly screamed when he heard another bump before his eyes finally found the orange ball of fur at the edge of his room. Of course, it was only Gizmo.

He exhaled slowly before he crawled out of bed and went to switch on his light. His room was thrown into blinding focus and it took a moment for his eyes to adjust. Some of the bulbs on the LED screen of his alarm clock were partially burned out, leaving him to guess whether it was 2:00 or 3:00 AM. Either way, it was too early for him to be awake but the thought of crawling back into bed only made him anxious. The nightmares were getting worse.

Ever since moving to Nockfell, he’d been thinking of the accident more and more. It’d happened a long time ago and he’d tried to put the memories to rest but something about Addison dredged them right back up. He hadn’t had a comfortable night’s sleep in weeks and it was starting to take its toll. He trudged out into the living room, briefly pausing by his dad’s bedroom door before he decided against waking him. There was no use bothering him about this; he’d been through enough. He continued to the kitchen to fill a glass with water but when he turned on the faucet, all he saw was blood.

No, not blood. Blood wasn’t ever that thick or that dark. He stood in silent horror, transfixed by the surreal sight, unable to do anything but watch as the sludge filled the sink and spilled onto the floor. It washed over his bare feet, crept underneath the fridge. Pretty soon, it’d consume everything.

There was a hand at his shoulder and, when he looked up, he found himself staring into endless hollow circles set into a face that wasn’t a face at all. All he saw was a shapeless form, stretching onward forever. His eyes saw ‘demon’ but his brain understood ‘man’. Monsters didn’t exist, not like they did in storybooks. People were the real monsters and this was a person more monstrous and grotesque than the world could understand. Again, he sensed that he knew this man…or, maybe, that this man knew him.

Somewhere in the distance, he heard a dog barking.

“SAL!”

He blinked and the world fell into place. He was sitting on Larry's bed, slumped against the taller boy with their legs knocking together. The latest Sanity’s Fall single was playing at his ear through an earbud that Larry had given to him what seemed like eons ago. He blinked again, trying and failing to remember how he’d gotten there.

“You’re freaking me out. Say something”.

He looked up at Larry’s face, at the worry creasing his brow and the heavy circles under his dark eyes. He had the strong urge to kiss him but he pushed the thought aside. Now wasn’t the best time.

“Sorry”, he pulled himself up, “I kinda zoned out”.

Larry thumbed off his walkman, plunging the tiny room into silence. Sal toyed with the sleeve of his sweater, too nervous to meet his gaze.

“You’ve been ‘kinda zoning out’ a lot lately. Like…a lot”.

“Tired”, he mumbled, as if that explained everything.

He knew Larry didn’t buy it for a second but he couldn’t possibly explain everything that was wrong in his fucked up life. They’d only just met and, while they were close - closer than he’d ever been to anyone outside of his family - he wasn’t sure how much he could open up. He’d been through hell and most people didn’t want to hear about all the trauma, about all the pain and death. It was bad enough that he had to walk around like a sideshow attraction, always praying that people would look past the mask and see that he was a person - just like them.

“If something’s wrong, you know you can talk to me, right?”

He hadn’t told anyone about that day. About the park, about the woods, about the dog that wasn’t a dog that never was a dog that he still wished had just been a fucking dog. 

“I’m fine”. 


	2. Chapter 2

**Part Two**

Addison was only quiet in the early mornings. 

Larry Johnson ignored the creaking pipes as he made his way down the hall, squarely focused on reaching the elevator. He normally didn't mind living in the basement, it afforded him the luxury of solitude, but it still carried an air of mystery that set his teeth on edge. It didn't matter that he was seventeen and not ten; the place was creepy as hell. He knew there were no ghosts hiding in darkened corners or blood-thirsty monsters waiting behind closet doors...but what if? He walked a little faster, long legged strides closing the distance between him and escape. He practically dove into the elevator and pushed the button for the fourth floor, finally relaxing once the doors slid closed. He leaned back against the wall and tried not to think about anything but his mind, as always, wandered. 

_"There's something wrong with him, Lisa! Don't you get it?!"_

_"He's our son! Don't talk about him like he's some monster! He didn't know any better!"_

_"Do you hear yourself?! The boy needs help, not for you to keep fucking coddling him!"_

The elevator chimed cheerily and Larry stepped out. The best and worst day of his life had started with death. There was always something twisted inside of him, something gnarled and ugly. Broken. But it wasn't really him; it was the red-eyed demon. It sounded childish and clumsy but that was the best way he could describe being blanketed by darkness. He didn't always know himself but he knew the demon. Maybe they were really one and the same. That day, he'd welcomed the flood of evil that hovered over him - desperate to finally be free from the ever-present emptiness that echoed through his soul. He was tired of feeling so powerless, so weak and afraid. So, he hurt something. He'd never heard a person scream like Mrs. Gibson had screamed that day. He should've been remorseful. Upset, at the very least. Instead, he felt like he'd finally cracked the code. There was power in fear. 

He shook the thoughts aside before he reached out to knock on Sal's door, telling himself to be cool. He'd killed a rabbit but that was years ago and Mrs. Gibson had gotten over it...sort of. Sure, he'd gotten stuck in juvie and his dad had left but that was in the past. He hadn't done anything since. He _wouldn't_ do anything. He poured all the madness into his paintings, refused to let them leave the canvas. It'd worked for years and it would continue to work. It had to. 

"Hey". 

Sal walked out to meet him, hefting his backpack over his shoulder. Larry let his gaze linger on the shorter boy while he adjusted the sleeves of his black sweater. Sal was a weird guy. One would think he'd be quiet and withdrawn, especially given the hand life had dealt him, but he was the exact opposite. He didn't shy away from people, didn't run from danger. He had a natural curiosity that propelled him forward and it was that eagerness that piqued Larry's interest. He wanted to know what secrets he kept hidden behind that mask, wanted to understand the mystery floating within the depths of his blue eyes. Larry knew that he could crush him, over and over again. Sal was so small and so trusting and Larry was so big and so not to be trusted. It was like the universe wanted to see the explosion. 

"Hey", he buried his hands in the pockets of his red sweatshirt to hide his trembling fingers from view, "Ready to go?"

* * *

A cool fall breeze welcomed them as they made their way to Nockfell High School. 

Sal watched a scattering of dried leaves dance across the sidewalk, trying his best to blink back the cloud of exhaustion that still blanketed his eyes. He'd slept through his alarm twice and it was a miracle he'd managed to get dressed on time. He was eagerly awaiting the day his sleep schedule would return to normal; he wasn't sure how much more of this he could take. He didn't think the move would be affecting him so badly but he didn't have any other explanation for how terrible he was feeling. He'd been under worse stress but maybe he'd finally had enough. A person could only take so much before they broke down. He was way overdue. 

"Don't look so sad. Only a few more months of hell before we're free". 

Larry's comment brought a smile to his face, "School's okay. Way better than my old one". 

The bullies at Nockfell, and he used that term loosely, paled in comparison to the pricks back in Trenton. He'd take a few shoves over getting his ass kicked and his stuff broken. He'd reclaimed the stupid nickname they'd given him but he didn't look back on those days with any fondness. 

"I don't know how you put up with it", Larry scowled, "If that was me..."

"There's no point. It just makes everything worse". 

'An eye for an eye makes the whole world blind' was something he believed in wholeheartedly. He had every reason to fight back but he didn't have the heart to hurt someone simply because they'd hurt him. He would sooner try to help than inflict any more pain upon the world. It didn't make sense to a lot of people, it probably didn't make sense to Larry, but he couldn't live his life any other way. It's what his mom would've wanted. 

"Or it'll teach them not to fuck with you". 

He rolled his eyes as they came up to the red brick exterior of the school, " _Nobody_ fucks with you". 

Larry may have had long-hair and an affinity for all things dark and gloomy but their classmates respected him. Sal hadn't yet figured out if that was simply because Larry was tall enough to make people leave him alone or because he knew how to talk trash. Either way, he was allowed to float through school like a ghost - unnoticed and free to do what he pleased. Sal wished he had that luxury. When you started school as 'the blue-haired kid with the mask', it made blending in impossible. 

"Exactly", Larry said with a smirk as they headed inside, "Nobody would fuck with you either if you just let me-"

"No, man. I don't need you beating people up because of whatever weird revenge boner you have". 

"Hey, my revenge boner isn't weird. It's perfectly normal. And big". 

"You're gross". 

"You're the one talking about my boner". 

He ignored Larry's light laughter as he dialed in his locker combination. He liked to believe that Larry had no idea he had a crush on him but times like this really made him wonder. He wasn't open about his sexuality, he had enough marks against him as it was, but he wasn't embarrassed about being bisexual. He just appreciated Larry's friendship and he didn't want to scare him off by jumping the gun so soon. It was too early to tell whether or not his feelings would change. 

"Hey, Sal...hey, Larry". 

He turned just as Ashley Campbell came to a stop next to his locker. Ashley was someone he admired, both for her artistic talents and her kindness. She stood out from most due to her cascade of auburn hair which fell in waves down her back. Sal had been enamored by it when he'd first met her. Truthfully, he still kind of was. Ashley was one of only a handful of people who'd talked to him when he first started and she'd even taken the liberty of showing him around school. She didn't care what he looked like, she was more interested in getting to know who he was. That meant a lot to him. He liked Ash and he would've loved to spend more time with her but it was nearly impossible. She and Larry hated each other. 

 _"Mierda",_ Larry muttered before he slammed his locker shut, "See ya, Sal". 

He gave him a weak wave before he watched him retreat up the hall. Ashley let out a groan of exasperation before she turned back to him. 

"See? I try". 

Sal sighed before he started walking and she easily fell into step beside him. Life would've been a whole lot easier if his two friends could stand to be in the same room for longer than five minutes but that wasn't how things worked for him. 

"I don't understand. I thought you two were friends". 

" _Were_ ", she reiterated, "Then, I woke up. Larry's bad news. You should really stay away from him". 

He still had no idea what happened between the two of them, neither of them seemed eager to talk about it, and so he was left to wonder. Larry was nothing but nice to him, as was Ash. There was no reason for him to abandon either of them. He didn't exactly have a wealth of friends; it would've been foolish of him to pick and choose. All he could hope was that they'd eventually put their differences aside. They'd been close before. They could be close again. Right?


End file.
